Latest news with #DepartmentofGeography
RTÉ News
21-07-2025
- Science
- RTÉ News
Coastal erosion threatening Ireland's ancient forts
Climate change is threatening the remains of hundreds of ancient forts dotted around Ireland's coasts, which are vulnerable to coastal erosion. The Copper Coast in Co Waterford is particularly rich in archaeology. Old mine workings are visible in many places and there are also at least 20 promontory forts, which were built on headlands or promontories. Surrounded by sea cliffs on three sides, the forts were protected by defensive ditches and banks on the landward side. Many were inhabited in medieval times, but it is believed some may date back to the Iron Age and contain evidence of trading links to Britain and further afield. Along the coast is Illaunobrick promontory fort, one of many examples of an archaeological site which has been made inaccessible by coastal erosion. Home to the O'Bric family for centuries, older maps show it used to be connected to the mainland, however coastal erosion has now made it too dangerous to access. Maritime Archaeologist on the Discovery Programme Dr Edward Pollard has recorded and explored many of the forts. Old maps studied by Dr Pollard and his colleagues show that coastal erosion has been changing the outline of the Copper Coast for centuries, something they have also witnessed since they started their own survey work. On a headland above the beach at Annestown, a ditch and bank which protected the Woodstown promontory fort for centuries, shows signs of collapse. Dr Pollard said that from the examination of 19th century maps, there has been at least 25 metres of erosion since about 1840 along the bank. "When the people built it, they used a weakness in the rock to actually build their ditch and build their bank but that is also the weakest part where the erosion is going to happen as well. So we can see that it's gradually being turned into an islet as it is eroded away." Professor Mary Bourke, Professor of Geomorphology at the Department of Geography in Trinity College Dublin, said sea level rise is occurring now and is going "to happen around every single part of the coastline of Ireland". She said everyone understands the concept that sea level rise brings a rise in water levels, but said "that's the water you see. It's also going to change the water that you don't see". She explained that there is "like a wedge of salt water that exists under my feet ... and that's going to expand and move further inland ... (that) will affect the processes that are operating, because it'll wet and weather a lot of the rocks from underneath upwards." Climate change is also expected to bring more extreme weather events, with floods and storms becoming more frequent and intense. "The height of the waves and the energy of the waves may be stronger and they may occur more frequently and together with sea level rise, it means that the area inland that will be affected by these coastal storms will actually increase," Prof Bourke added. She said that while storms and sea level rise undermine coasts, heavy rain is the threat from above. "Rain has a lot of energy, with it. So, it will wet our soft coasts and cause more landslides. And we can see that from the research that we've already done." Catherine Casey, Head of Climate Change at the Heritage Council, said Ireland's built archaeology is "being pummelled by more rain, more storms. Our wildlife, our mature trees, for example, are being threatened by droughts, by wildfires. "But also what we don't always think of is our cultural heritage, if a piece of ground is lost, or God forbid if a community has to move, their stories could be lost, the place names, the folklore, the genealogy in the graveyards." She said it is important to highlight not just what is vulnerable, but also projects which give an example of what can be done "to focus our minds really on where action is needed, to help to focus resources, to identify the highest priorities and to target government, national and local action".
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Business Standard
13-05-2025
- Health
- Business Standard
Human antibiotic use polluting rivers, fuelling drug resistance: Study
Millions of kilometers of rivers around the world are carrying antibiotic pollution at levels high enough to promote drug resistance and harm aquatic life, a new study warns. The study estimated the scale of global river contamination from human antibiotics use. Researchers calculated that about 8,500 tons of antibiotics -- nearly one-third of what people consume annually -- end up in river systems around the world each year even after in many cases passing through wastewater systems. Published in PNAS Nexus, the study is the first to estimate the scale of global river contamination from human antibiotics use. "While the amounts of residues from individual antibiotics translate into only very small concentrations in most rivers, which makes them very difficult to detect, the chronic and cumulative environmental exposure to these substances can still pose a risk to human health and aquatic ecosystems," said Heloisa Ehalt Macedo, a post-doctoral fellow in geography at McGill and lead author of the study. The research team used a global model validated by field data from nearly 900 river locations. They found that amoxicillin, the world's most-used antibiotic, is the most likely to be present at risky levels, especially in Southeast Asia, where rising use and limited wastewater treatment amplify the problem. "This study is not intended to warn about the use of antibiotics -- we need antibiotics for global health treatments -- but our results indicate that there may be unintended effects on aquatic environments and antibiotic resistance, which calls for mitigation and management strategies to avoid or reduce their implications," said Bernhard Lehner, a professor in global hydrology in McGill's Department of Geography and co-author of the study. The findings are especially notable because the study did not consider antibiotics from livestock or pharmaceutical factories, both of which are major contributors to environmental contamination. "Our results show that antibiotic pollution in rivers arising from human consumption alone is a critical issue, which would likely be exacerbated by veterinarian or industry sources of related compounds" said Jim Nicell, an environmental engineering professor at McGill and co-author of the study. "Monitoring programs to detect antibiotic or other chemical contamination of waterways are therefore needed, especially in areas that our model predicts to be at risk," he added.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
UGA professors research accuracy of heat monitoring smartphone application
A key component of heat safety in an effort to avoid heat illnesses involves monitoring environmental conditions through heat stress. A recently published study out of the University of Georgia identified a smartphone application designed to monitor heat-related risks through direct on-site measurements. 'A lot of my work and the people I work with, we interact a lot with people in athletic training and other settings where they have to monitor conditions for safety,' said Andrew Grundstein, professor in the Department of Geography, at the University of Georgia. 'Athletic trainers are coming to us saying, 'There's this new app. How well does it work?' Grundstein added, 'We didn't know. There isn't a lot of information on the website that could tell us how accurate it was. So that's how we constructed our study, to at least have a comparison with the gold standard of taking measurements on site." The study, Evaluating Heat Risk: Comparing On-Site WBGT Measurements Versus Smartphone Application Estimates, highlighted that the key component of heat safety involves monitoring environmental conditions through heat stress indices like the wet bulb globe temperature and adjusting activity as conditions get progressively hotter. 'We got athletic trainers from 26 different schools in 11 states to collect data for two months,' said Grundstein. 'The data was collected during the hottest time of the year, August and September. That's important, because that's when a lot of fall sports began, especially football. Football players are really susceptible to heat. The information is used to guide safety decisions for players on the field. They also collected data with the app.' The study compared the phone application-derived Zelus wet bulb globe temperature estimates with on-site measurements from Kestrel 5400 devices and their impact on activity modification categorization. Traditionally, on-site wet bulb globe temperature measurement devices are used, according to the study. But phone applications offering wet bulb globe temperature estimates have emerged as a potential alternative. However, there is little information on how closely phone application-derived wet bulb globe temperature matches on-site measurements to guide decision-making. 'So we had a data set of their observations collected on site, right over grass, artificial turf or other surfaces,' said Grundstein. 'Using that data, we were able to analyze how the application did compared to the on site data. We used that information to write our paper.' Grundstein added, 'If you look across the U.S., heat is the leading weather killer. It kills more people than tornadoes, hurricanes and floods, which I think surprises a lot of people. Athletes are really susceptible to heat. It's one of the top three leading causes of sudden death in sports. It can also lead to all sorts of heat-related problems, short of dying.' More than 700 people die from extreme heat every year in the United States, according to experts with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Aside from athletes older adults, young children, and people with chronic medical conditions are at high risk for heat-related illness and death. 'Heat causes a lot of serious problems in athletes, the general population and in our working population,' he said. 'One of the best ways to protect people is to collect information on how hot it is outside and adjust what people are doing. So if it's really hot, you might want to give them more rest breaks, shorten the practice or make the practice less intense.' 'We know that when you put safety measures in place it substantially reduces the number of people that have heat-related problems,' said Grundstein. 'There's all sorts of new technology that's coming out to collect health data, to monitor weather conditions and so forth. I think people just want to know how well these tools work. This particular product we assessed and people want to know does this work well. That's what led to our study. What we found was that the app tended to underestimate the heat stress.' This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Partners. Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at EVanBuren@ or on X: @EricaVanBuren32. This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: UGA study looks at environment monitoring smartphone application
Business Mayor
10-05-2025
- Health
- Business Mayor
Antibiotics from human use are contaminating rivers worldwide, study shows
Millions of kilometres of rivers around the world are carrying antibiotic pollution at levels high enough to promote drug resistance and harm aquatic life, a McGill University-led study warns. Published in PNAS Nexus , the study is the first to estimate the scale of global river contamination from human antibiotics use. Researchers calculated that about 8,500 tonnes of antibiotics — nearly one-third of what people consume annually — end up in river systems around the world each year even after in many cases passing through wastewater systems. 'While the amounts of residues from individual antibiotics translate into only very small concentrations in most rivers, which makes them very difficult to detect, the chronic and cumulative environmental exposure to these substances can still pose a risk to human health and aquatic ecosystems,' said Heloisa Ehalt Macedo, a postdoctoral fellow in geography at McGill and lead author of the study. The research team used a global model validated by field data from nearly 900 river locations. They found that amoxicillin, the world's most-used antibiotic, is the most likely to be present at risky levels, especially in Southeast Asia, where rising use and limited wastewater treatment amplify the problem. 'This study is not intended to warn about the use of antibiotics — we need antibiotics for global health treatments — but our results indicate that there may be unintended effects on aquatic environments and antibiotic resistance, which calls for mitigation and management strategies to avoid or reduce their implications,' said Bernhard Lehner, a professor in global hydrology in McGill's Department of Geography and co-author of the study. The findings are especially notable because the study did not consider antibiotics from livestock or pharmaceutical factories, both of which are major contributors to environmental contamination. 'Our results show that antibiotic pollution in rivers arising from human consumption alone is a critical issue, which would likely be exacerbated by veterinarian or industry sources of related compounds' said Jim Nicell, an environmental engineering professor at McGill and co-author of the study. 'Monitoring programs to detect antibiotic or other chemical contamination of waterways are therefore needed, especially in areas that our model predicts to be at risk.'
Time of India
24-04-2025
- Health
- Time of India
The case for super cool materials to make Indian cities cope with the new climate normal of urban heat
Ansar Khan is an urban climatologist and an Assistant Professor at the Department of Geography at Lalbaba College, Calcutta University. He has several peer-reviewed publications in various academic journals. LESS ... MORE Cities worldwide are experiencing a shift in their urban climate, with extreme heat becoming a defining challenge due to rapid urbanization and climate change. Indian cities, in particular, are facing unprecedented temperature surges, escalating public health crises, economic pressures, and infrastructure failures. Scientists warn that without urgent deployment of advanced heat mitigation strategies, urban centres will become increasingly unlivable, with dire consequences for human health, energy systems, and economic stability. Rising urban temperatures have already led to record-breaking heat waves, with severe health impacts. Hospitals are reporting a surge in cases of heat exhaustion, dehydration, cardiovascular distress, and respiratory complications, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, and outdoor workers. Studies show that prolonged exposure to extreme heat heightens the risk of heat stroke, kidney failure, and mental health disorders, while also exacerbating chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension. The urban heat island effect further intensifies the crisis by trapping heat, keeping night-time temperatures dangerously high, and reducing the body's ability to recover from prolonged exposure. Beyond health concerns, extreme heat is placing immense pressure on energy infrastructure, with electricity demand for cooling skyrocketing. In cities like Kolkata, air conditioning use has surged by 40% during peak summer months, leading to frequent power failures. Many low-income households, unable to afford cooling solutions, remain at heightened risk of heat-induced illnesses and fatalities. Businesses, too, are suffering from increased cooling costs, reduced productivity, and economic losses as outdoor labourers face declining work hours due to unsafe working conditions. While conventional cooling solutions such as tree plantations and green roofs are often considered, they face limitations in dense urban environments due to space constraints. Additionally, increased vegetation can sometimes raise humidity levels, promote volatile organic compound emissions, and contribute to ozone formation, worsening air quality. Recognizing these challenges, scientists are advocating for large-scale deployment of advanced heat mitigation technologies, particularly super cool materials, which have shown remarkable potential in reducing urban heat at scale. Our research have demonstrated the effectiveness of these solutions in large-scale studies. The study in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, assessed the impact of radiative coolers, reflective coatings, and hybrid green infrastructure across 3,323 urban buildings. The results were striking, with a peak temperature reduction of 4.5°C, a 26% decrease in annual cooling degree hours, and a 16% reduction in cooling energy consumption. When combined with energy-efficient adaptations, the total cooling demand fell by 35%, highlighting the potential of these technologies in mitigating urban overheating. In Kolkata, where summer temperatures frequently exceed 40°C, super cool materials applied to roofs, walls, and pavements have been found to reduce peak air temperatures by 5.3°C, with sub-ambient cooling of up to 8.2°C during the hottest hours of the day. These materials utilize advanced radiative cooling and high-reflectivity coatings to dissipate heat into the atmosphere passively, significantly lowering temperatures without additional energy consumption. Unlike traditional cooling methods, super cool materials require minimal maintenance and can be scaled across dense urban landscapes, making them a viable solution for heat-prone cities. Despite the severity of the crisis, public awareness remains low, and policymakers have yet to implement effective urban heat warning systems to protect vulnerable communities. Scientists emphasize that immediate government intervention is essential, with mandatory heat action plans, early warning alerts, and financial support for heat-resilient infrastructure. Extreme urban heat is not a distant threat but a present emergency. Indian cities must act now to deploy large-scale cooling technologies and establish robust heat warning systems. Delaying action will lead to irreversible damage with severe consequences for human lives, economic stability, and environmental sustainability. With climate change amplifying the urban heat island effect, the cost of inaction is rising rapidly. Scientists, urban planners, and health experts urge city authorities to prioritize climate-resilient urban design, energy-efficient cooling systems, and public education to protect millions from the growing dangers of extreme heat. Without immediate intervention, Indian cities, alongside other heat-prone regions worldwide, face the risk of becoming uninhabitable, threatening public health, economic viability, and overall quality of life. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
